Chuck Vs The Missing Memories
by ersk4
Summary: It's 10 years in the future and when Chuck wakes up after an accident, he doesn't remember any of the past 10 years including the intersect and all of the changes that have occurred in his life.
1. Awakening

CHUCK VS. THE MISSING MEMORIES

DISCLAIMER: I don't own "Chuck."

SUMMARY: It's 10 years in the future and when Chuck wakes up after an accident, he doesn't remember any of the past 10 years including the intersect and all of the changes that have occurred in his life.

NOTE: In case you're wondering, this story does NOT end with everything being a dream.

PART 1 - AWAKENING:

There was mostly darkness. Somewhere in the darkness, he could see something. He didn't know what. It seemed so far away, like a small bright spot at the end of long, long dark tunnel. He couldn't see or hear what was happening there. But it seemed important, as if he needed to be there or do something there. But he couldn't get to it nor reach it.

Then the darkness faded and there was light. He had opened his eyes. He heard voices. And there was a woman, a beautiful woman with blonde hair looking down at him. She smiled brightly and her eyes lit up when she realized he was awake. "Chuck!" she yelled. He sat up in his bed and immediately regretted doing that as pain hit him. He groaned and slumped back on the bed.

"Chuck! What's wrong? What is it?" that blonde asked.

"It's probably just pain. Maybe the pain killers aren't working too well," Ellie said.

"Nope!" Chuck groaned. "They're not!"

"All right! Awesome! Chuck's awake!" Devon said.

Chuck kept his head still to try to lessen the pain and looked around with his eyes to see if he could figure out where he was and what was going on. He was in bed. Not his bed at home. He was in a room, some strange room. It looked like a … pain … everybody glad he was awake … strange room … hospital! He was in the hospital. But why? What happened?

He looked up and glanced left. Ellie was there and standing next to her was Awesome. Both of them looked relieved, concerned and glad. But something looked different about them. They were Ellie and Awesome but they looked different, they looked older. Or did they? Were his eyes playing tricks on him?

He looked to the right. Morgan was there. He too looked relieved and concerned. But he also looked different. It was Morgan but like Ellie and Devon, he looked older. And he was wearing a suit and tie. Morgan in a business suit? Why wasn't he wearing a BuyMore shirt?

And then next to Morgan, standing closest to Chuck on the side of the bed was … who was that? It was that gorgeous blonde that he saw when he first opened his eyes. Is this the nurse? She kept smiling beautifully and spectacularly at him. She looked so happy.

Wow, Chuck thought, did I luck out on a hot nurse!

Then the blonde nurse did something that surprised Chuck. She looked adoringly at him, spoke his name softly, reached out with her hand, stroked his cheek and then leaned down and kissed him. And it wasn't a peck on the cheek or a quick friendly kiss, it was a long, loving, full-on-the-mouth, wait-until-I-get-you-alone kiss. "Welcome back Chuck!" she said after finishing the kiss.

Stunned and shocked, Chuck's eyes got big as she stroked his hair and face while continuing to look adoringly at him. He looked at Ellie, Devon and Morgan. They all smiled and didn't seem surprised that this nurse kissed him.

"What are you doing?" Chuck asked.

Ellie, Devon, Morgan's smiles turned to puzzlement. The blonde nurse stood back up and looked at him. "Chuck?" she questioned.

"Why did you kiss me?" he asked.

"Chuck?" she said again. Now she looked worried.

"That's my name. What's yours?" he said.

Her eyes opened wide and her worried expression got bigger.

"Chuck!" Ellie scolded. "That isn't funny! You were in an accident and you've been in a coma for a few days. We've all been really afraid and concerned. Stop with the jokes."

"I'm not joking Ellie. Hey, I'm Chuck Bartowski and I work for the Nerd Herd at the BuyMore store. You're my sister Ellie and you are a doctor. This is your boyfriend Devon, otherwise known as Captain Awesome, who is also a doctor. This is my best friend and co-worker at the BuyMore, Morgan. OK? Satisfied?"

All of them looked at him strangely. Now the blonde looked scared.

Ellie broke the silence. "And her?" she said motioning at the blonde.

"Never saw her before in my life," Chuck said. "I just assumed she was a nurse. Who is she?"

Now, all of them looked scared. Then Devon looked as if something had occurred to him and he asked, "Chuck, do you know what year it is?"

"Sure! 2006!"

Ellie's jaw dropped and her eyes widened. The blonde gasped. Then Ellie motioned again at the blonde. "Then you really don't know her?" Ellie asked.

"No, I don't," Chuck insisted. "Who is she?"

He looked at each of them waiting for an answer. No one spoke. Then, finally, the blonde answered. "I'm Sarah … Sarah Bartowski, your wife!"

End Part 1


	2. Realization

CHUCK VS. THE MISSING MEMORY

DISCLAIMER: I don't own "Chuck."

SUMMARY: It's 10 years in the future and when Chuck wakes up after an accident, he doesn't remember any of the past 10 years including the intersect and all of the changes that have occurred in his life.

NOTE: In case you're wondering, this story does NOT end with everything being a dream.

PART 2 - REALIZATION:

This is a dream, Chuck said to himself as he lay in the hospital bed. Ellie told him that he had been in an accident, gotten injured, and had been in a coma for almost two days. That's it, he thought. I'm still in a coma and I'm imagining all of this. It's all a dream.

It has to be, he concluded. Because for one thing, it was 2006 NOT 2016 as all four of them insisted. He couldn't just have forgotten 10 years of his life, could he? How could he have forgotten that much?

And then for another thing, how could he, Chuck Bartowski, member of the BuyMore Nerd Herd, computer geek, video gamer, and all things ordinary and unexciting, have a wife like, like … what was her name? He tried to remember. Sarah! Sarah! That was it. How could he possibly get a wife as gorgeous, beautiful and as hot as her?

And even if in the remotest of possibilities, miracle of all miracles, and luckiest of all luck, he had managed to get someone who looked like Sarah to fall in love with him, he most certainly would NOT have forgotten her. Someone like Sarah falling in love with him and marrying him? Such things don't happen, Chuck thought. Not in a million years, not in his wildest dreams. The odds were infinitely better of him winning a power ball lottery 10 months in a row.

It has to be a dream, it HAS to be a dream, he insisted to himself. He was alone in his hospital room at the moment. Ellie, Devon, Morgan, and his "wife" were out in the hallway talking to the doctor.

After he had said that the year was 2006, all of them peppered him with denials and assertions that just seemed … well, some of the things they said had happened seemed logical but others? Chuck just wasn't sure what to believe.

They told him that Ellie and Devon were married and had been since 2009. That certainly made sense. His sister and Devon were made for each other. Morgan no longer worked at the BuyMore. He left years ago and was now developing video games. Big Mike no longer ran the store. He retired and Anna was now in charge. Morgan and Anna were married. Morgan with a real job, a wife and a life? Chuck thought that could be possible but wasn't sure.

And then there were the whoppers. Sarah, this beautiful blonde knockout who could probably have any 10 guys she wanted with a snap of her fingers, was his wife. She walked into the BuyMore one day in 2007, came up to the Nerd Herd Help Desk and needed her phone repaired. Chuck repaired it, she later asked him out on a date, and they had pretty much been inseparable ever since. She worked for the government and helped Chuck get a job with the government. She claimed that she had liked him at first sight and after a long courtship, they got married and had been for years.

"Has 'Fantasy Island' been revived?" Chuck snorted after hearing all that. No one laughed.

"Uhh Chuck, take a look on your left hand," Morgan said while pointing downward.

Chuck looked. He was wearing a gold wedding band on his left ring finger. The blonde – what was her name again? Sarah, that was it – held up her left hand. She had on a matching wedding band and an engagement ring. "Look on the inside of your ring," she said.

Chuck pulled off the ring. There on the inside of the band was an inscription – "Love, Sarah, 6-3-10." Sarah pulled off her wedding band and showed Chuck the inscription in hers. It said "Love, Chuck, 6-3-10."

"What's that date?" Chuck asked.

"It's when we got married," Sarah replied.

A doctor had come in afterwards and looked him over and now they were all outside of his room talking. He couldn't hear what they were saying. It has to be a dream, it has to be a dream, Chuck kept thinking as he recalled everything that had been said.

After a while, Sarah came in. She shut the door and walked over to a side of his bed and sat down beside him. She reached down, gripped his hand, looked at him, and smiled. And not for the first time, did he notice that she had a gorgeous smile.

Dream, dream, dream, Chuck thought again.

"The doctor thinks that this memory loss is just temporary. He wants you to stay here overnight and if everything looks OK tomorrow, I can take you home. He thinks that you'll eventually remember everything on your own. Ellie and Devon agree with this. So hopefully tomorrow at the latest, we'll get you out of here."

"What happened? How did I get this way?" Chuck asked.

Sarah hesitated. She bit the bottom of her lip. "Well, it's … complicated. Your job and my job … we do … sort of important work … and it's classified … and …."

"Let me guess," Chuck said in jest. "I'm a super spy and I go around saving the world."

Sarah didn't laugh. She just looked at him with a serious expression.

"Oh come on! Come on! Come on! You can't be serious! You're kidding! This is ridiculous!"

Sarah didn't laugh. She let Chuck rant and when he finished, she squeezed his hand. "We talk about work some other time. And we'll also talk about the accident that caused this."

She looked at him and bit the bottom of her lip again. Chuck stared at her. She looked like she wanted to say something more but wasn't sure. "Is there something else?" he asked.

"Yes."

But she stayed silent after that. She kept looking at him and holding his hand. Then she released it and reached up and stroked his face gently. She sighed.

"Chuck, we've been married for almost six years now and …." She hesitated and then smiled at him. "Chuck, we're not only married, we're also parents."

"WHAT?"

She nodded. "We have a daughter. She's three years old."

Sarah stayed with him long after that announcement and talked with him. But Chuck didn't really hear what she said. He kept saying to himself that this all had to be a dream. And when he finally fell asleep that night with Sarah sitting beside him on his bed and holding his hand, he convinced himself that he would wake up in the morning and everything would all be back the way he remembered.

END PART 2


	3. Homecoming

CHUCK VS. THE MISSING MEMORIES

DISCLAIMER: I don't own "Chuck."

SUMMARY: It's 10 years in the future and when Chuck wakes up after an accident, he doesn't remember any of the past 10 years including the intersect and all of the changes that have occurred in his life.

NOTE: In case you're wondering, this story does NOT end with everything being a dream.

PART 3 - HOMECOMING

But when Chuck woke up the next morning, it was all still the same. He was in 2016, he was in the hospital and he was married to this blonde. What was her name again, he thought. Sarah!

Sarah, Sarah, Sarah, Sarah, Sarah, he repeated silently.

During the morning, a nurse – a nurse considerably less good looking than Sarah, he thought – came in and checked his vitals and said that things looked good. The doctor that checked him out yesterday came in with a chart and looked him over and said that things looked good. He talked briefly with Chuck about his memory loss, assuring him that he was indeed in 2016 and that his memory would probably return "in due time." And with that, the doctor pronounced him fit to go home and gave him a bottle pills for any pain he might have and told him to take things easy for a while.

A couple of minutes later, Sarah appeared with some clothes for him to change into. She walked into the room, shut the door, set the clothes on the bed and reached over and helped Chuck sit up.

"I'm not an invalid you know," Chuck said.

"Sorry!" she replied. "It's an old habit. Ever since we first met, I got … I got kind of protective about you. I still am and I get worried and concerned when you get hurt and I just want to …." She stopped, shook her head and smiled.

Chuck sat on the edge of the bed. "OK, I need to get dressed now," he said.

She looked puzzled. "Go ahead," she replied.

"Uhh, don't you think you should leave the room while I get dressed?"

"Chuck! We're married and we have a daughter! I've seen you naked many, many times. You can get dressed in front of me!"

"Well … it's just …."

"CHUCK!" she said and she gave him a look.

And with that look, suddenly something happened inside Chuck's head. He wasn't in the hospital, he was at the BuyMore Nerd Herd desk and he heard his name called. He turned and there was Sarah walking down an aisle toward him wearing some sort of outfit or dress that she looked spectacular in. Seeing him, she smiled beautifully and walked quickly toward him. When she reached his side, she looked up at him and whispered "Kiss me."

"What?!" Chuck asked incredulously.

"Kiss me!" she whispered again. "You're my boy friend and I'm your girl friend, so act like it and kiss me!"

He leaned close to her face.

"Chuck!" Sarah had said his name again and the image vanished. She looked at him, concerned. "Did you just flash?"

"Did I what?"

"Uhhh, did you just see a lot of images or things happening?"

"Yeah. Of you and me."

She stepped closer to him and touched his face gently. "Tell me what you saw."

He described the scene. She nodded. "Do you remember that?"

"No," he said and she looked sad at that. "I'm sorry," he added. "I really, really wish I could remember you! I can't believe that I would forget someone like you!"

Sarah smiled, leaned forward, and kissed him. The kiss set off all kinds of fireworks and explosions in Chuck's brain. When their lips finally parted, he felt a little dizzy. He was surprised to notice that the kiss had affected her in the same way when she leaned her forehead against him as if waiting to regain her balance.

After a few seconds, she looked up at him. "Get dressed and let's go home!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The drive home was unfamiliar to Chuck. He had assumed that home meant the apartment that he shared – or had shared, he corrected -- with Ellie and Devon. But in the car, Sarah explained to him that Ellie and Devon moved out after their marriage and got a house. And then when he and Sarah got married, they bought a house. After about a 20-minute drive from the hospital, that's where they were.

Sarah pulled the car into the driveway, punched the button for the garage door opener and parked the car in the garage. It was a large two-door garage and from the looks of the front of the house, the house was large too. He looked to the right at the other car parked in the garage. It wasn't a Nerd Herd vehicle as he remembered having. He didn't recognize the model or brand but the car looked nice. He assumed that car brands and models had changed in the nine or 10 years that he didn't remember.

When the garage door had shut and things were quiet, Sarah turned to Chuck. "I want to alert you. Our daughter has really been worried about you and really missed you! She's probably going to jump all over you. OK?" She paused for a moment and then asked, "Ready?"

"Wait," Chuck said. "What's her name?"

"Sallie."

"Sallie," he repeated and then asked, "Where did that come from?"

"You wanted to name her Sarah. I wanted to name her Ellie. So we combined both and took the 'Sa' from my name and the 'llie' from Ellie's name," she replied.

"That's nice. I like that."

Sarah smiled and then asked again, "Ready?"

"Yeah."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

They got out of the car and walked toward the door. Sarah unlocked the door with her keys and turned to Chuck. "Oh, one more thing. Don't be shocked about the babysitter."

They entered a small room that had a washer and dryer in it, walked through that to a large kitchen and through that to a dining area. Chuck could see a man and a small, dark-haired girl sitting at a large table and hunched over a laptop computer.

"Sallie, look who's back home!" Sarah called.

The small head turned and the face lit up brightly at what she saw. "DADDY!" she screamed. She leaped out of her chair dashed toward Chuck. She latched onto Chuck's legs and hugged them. Then she looked up at him, held up her arms, hopped up and down on her feet, yelling "Up! Up! Up! Up! Up! Up!"

Chuck reached down to her with his arms which she jumped into. He picked her up and looked at her. Once at his eye level, the girl hugged him. "Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!" she screamed over and over again.

Chuck was stunned. He looked above the kid's mop of dark hair at Sarah. Sarah was smiling and looking fondly at them. She reached up and rubbed Sallie's hair. "Hey! What about mommy?" she said.

"Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!" Sallie said and reached to Sarah with one arm while still anchoring her other arm on Chuck. Sarah moved in close to Chuck, pressing against his side and kissed the little girl's cheek.

Suddenly an image appeared in his mind. He was sitting on the side of a hospital bed. Sarah was in the bed, sitting up. She looked tired, sweaty, exhausted but happy. And she was holding an infant. She looked at Chuck, lovingly. "Hey! We did great didn't we?" she asked with a dazzling smile at him and then toward the baby. As quickly as the image appeared in his mind, it disappeared and he was back in the kitchen with Sarah and Sallie pressed close to him.

Chuck then looked over at the dining room at the man, the baby sitter that Sarah had mentioned. What the? he thought.

"Hey Chuck! Glad you're home! Sallie and I were just hanging out and playing some video games!" Morgan said.

Morgan? Morgan, the baby sitter? Chuck thought. He looked over at Sarah incredulously. "Morgan is babysitting a child? Our child? Morgan?" he whispered.

She nodded. "He's actually very good." Then she turned toward Morgan and frowned. "Morgan, you better not have been playing any of those adult or teen video games with her!"

"Relax! It was all kid's stuff." He folded up the laptop, picked it up, and stood up from the table. "I hate to rush off but I do need to get to work. I have a presentation to make about this new game I'm developing."

It was then that Chuck noticed that Morgan was in a business suit again. "Gotta go!" Morgan said.

"Thanks for minding Sallie, Morgan!" Sarah said. "It was a big help!"

"No problem! Chuck, glad you're back home! Take care now! Off I go!"

And he left. Morgan in a suit, with a real job and actually taking care of kids? That's even more unrealistic than my being married to someone who looks like Sarah, Chuck thought.

END PART 3


	4. Home Life

CHUCK VS. THE MISSING MEMORIES

DISCLAIMER: I don't own "Chuck."

SUMMARY: It's 10 years in the future and when Chuck wakes up after an accident, he doesn't remember any of the past 10 years including the intersect and all of the changes that have occurred in his life.

NOTE: In case you're wondering, this story does NOT end with everything being a dream.

PART 4 – HOME LIFE

When Sallie finally settled down and remained still for four consecutive seconds, Chuck was able to get a close look at her. He studied her face. She had Sarah's eyes. The hair definitely resembled his. He could other signs of him and Sarah in her face. Sallie looked like, he had to admit to himself, a remarkably beautiful combination of features from him and Sarah.

And she was incredibly precocious. He instantly felt his heart melting as Sallie sat with him on the couch, close to him, touching him and telling him what she had been doing. At one point he looked up and found Sarah watching them and smiling. Chuck couldn't help but smile back.

Later, he walked around the house, exploring each room with Sallie staying close to him as did Sarah. The house was large, spacious and nicely decorated. I probably had nothing to do with that, he thought.

In addition to the utility room, kitchen and dining area that he had come through when he had been brought home, the house had a living area, five bedrooms, and three bathrooms. One of the bedrooms was obviously Sallie's and another was obviously his and Sarah's. One bedroom appeared to be for storage, another for guest quarters and the last was an office of some sorts with desk, computer, printer, and shelves of books, action figures, figurines, DVDs and some other collectibles that Chuck recognized.

Sallie dashed into the room and went to the computer.

"Daddy, can we do my story?" she asked.

"Your what?" Chuck replied.

"Storybook Weaver," Sarah said. "You've been working on a story with her in that computer program."

"Storybook Weaver? That old thing?" Chuck said. "That's a program I used when I was a kid." He recalled that program which enabled you to choose scenery, settings, sounds, characters and such and create your own story on the computer.

"One and the same! You've been showing her how it works and helping her write a story. The three of us sometimes sit around the computer together and do that," Sarah explained. Then she turned toward Sallie. "After we eat, we'll all work on your story."

And they did. After lunch, they all gathered in the room. Chuck sat in one of the chairs and turned on the computer. Sallie immediately climbed up into his lap and positioned herself so that she faced the computer. She sat straight up and placed her hands onto the edge of the desk, one in front of the keyboard and one in front of the mouse.

"Does she know how to use this?" Chuck asked as Sarah sat down in the second chair and moved it closer to Chuck.

"She's been raised on it and taught by the best. After she was born, you worked at home a lot and often sat at the computer with her in your lap. When she started talking, you started showing how to do things on the computer. She comprehends quite a bit considering that she's three years old. She's amazing on the computer. Just like her father," Sarah beamed.

They spent a while working and playing with Sallie's story on the Storybook Weaver program. All three of them participated in choosing characters, settings, sound effects and writing dialog and text and laughing and teasing. Chuck found that Sarah was correct in Sallie's ability with the computer. She comprehended certain things and what she didn't know, she seemed interested and seemed to listen when Chuck explained them to her -- which he found himself doing without even thinking, like he had done it many times before.

The day passed quickly. In the early evening, they had dinner and about an hour or more after that, Sallie was put to bed. The house quieted considerably then. Ellie called, wanting a report on Chuck and Sarah filled her in. During this, Chuck sat on the couch and channel surfed on the television.

He soon discovered that he didn't recognize any of the prime time TV lineup. No "Lost." Did they ever get off of that island? Chuck pondered. No "Supernatural." He wondered how Sam and Dean made out in their battle against demons and monsters. No "Heroes." Did they ever save the world? No "Simpsons." Well, it had to end some time. He wondered if a new Star Trek or X-Files movie had come out during the years he couldn't remember. He'd be getting a lot of DVDs, that was for sure, assuming that they still made DVDs.

He turned off the TV and sat quietly. After a few minutes, Sarah joined him on the couch. She sat closely to him, pressing completely against his side and laying her head on his shoulder. She felt wonderful, Chuck thought. He wondered if he should put his arm around her.

"Do you have any memories of Sallie?" Sarah asked.

"Yeah. I saw me in a hospital room with you in the bed, holding a baby and looking up at me and saying 'Hey! We did great didn't we?' Is that a real memory?"

"It's real," she said softly. "That was right after she was born and I held her for the first time. One of the most perfect moments with you."

"Well, I may not remember everything. But I don't need any memories to know how great she is. She really is," he replied.

"Yes, she takes after her father," Sarah said as she pressed closer against him. They stayed that way for a while and then she yawned. Chuck looked at her. "You look really tired."

"I haven't slept well for the past few days. I've been so worried about you," she acknowledged.

"OK, then off to bed with you," he said as he stood, pulled her up, set his hands on her shoulders, turned her around and lightly pushed her on her way. He intended to sit back down but Sarah reached back with one hand, grabbed his and pulled, leading him down the hallway to their bedroom.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Chuck pulled back the covers on the queen-size bed and lay down. He stared around the room. It was a large with an adjoining bathroom that had his/her closets, a counter with his/her sinks and shower stall.

There were a few paintings on the wall of landscapes. He didn't recognize any of them. And there were photographs throughout the room. Some of him and Sarah together, some of the whole family and some individual shots. One in particular caught his eye – he and Sarah standing together with him in his Nerd Herd clothes and she looking spectacular and sexy in the Princess Leia slave girl outfit from "Return of the Jedi." He didn't recognize where that or any of the other photos came from. As he looked at the photos with Sarah, he constantly found himself thinking how beautiful she was. This has to be a dream, he thought for the umpteenth time.

He heard Sarah walking through the house, making sure the doors were locked, turning on the alarm system, and checking on Sallie. When she walked into the bedroom, Chuck turned and looked at her. She was wearing a robe that went down to mid thigh. He couldn't help staring at her legs. She walked to the side of the bed, pulled down the covers and then started to take off her robe.

"Whoa! Whoa! Wait a minute! Wait!" Chuck yelped.

"What?" she said.

"Uhh … should we be doing this … I … don't know about this … it doesn't …. Maybe I should sleep on the couch until we get things figured out," he sputtered.

"Chuck, calm down! We ARE married. We have been married for years. And we were together before that. And we slept together before we were married. We'll just sleep now, OK? We don't have to do anything more," she said firmly. And then she added "But that option is open."

"I need to get a pain killer," Chuck said and he dashed out the room toward the kitchen.

"Chuck!"

He got to the kitchen and found the pill bottle. He picked it up but instead of opening the bottle and taking one of the pain killers, he started pacing. "OK, let's assess the situation," he rattled out loud. "You don't remember anything about the past nine, 10 years after waking up from some accident. And somehow, you have ended up married to a beautiful gorgeous blonde, you have a wonderful daughter, you're living with this nice, loving family in a big beautiful house, and your hot, fantastic-looking wife wants you to get in bed with her. And instead of doing that, you are in the kitchen talking to yourself. Yep, that makes perfect sense. It all makes perfect sense. You are crazy!"

"CHUCK!"

He jumped at Sarah's voice and turned around. There she was, standing at the entryway to the kitchen, still wearing that short bathrobe, with her arms crossed and a frown on her face.

"Chuck, I know this is confusing to you. But let's talk about this. We're just sleeping, we don't have to do anything else," she said firmly.

He still needed some time to figure this out. "Go ahead. I'll be there in a minute. I just need to find my pills. I'm looking for my pills," he said.

"The pills in your hand?"

He looked. Yep, those pills in his hand. He started to say something but Sarah cut him off.

"CHUCK – BED – NOW!"

Then an image appeared in his mind. It was night and he and Sarah were at some sort of construction site. She was dressed all in black and her hair was set back in a ponytail. She was absolutely furious as she gripped the front of his shirt with both hands, affixed him with a commanding look, and screamed at him.

"DON'T YOU EVER DO THAT AGAIN! YOU COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED! DO YOU KNOW WHAT I THOUGHT WHEN I SAW YOU LAYING THERE AFTER YOU FELL? DO YOU KNOW WHAT I THOUGHT? DO YOU?"

Sarah wasn't just mad at him, she was nuclear! He found himself trembling as she roared at him and when she asked that question, all he could do was shake his head. To which she roared at him again.

"I THOUGHT YOU WERE DEAD! DEAD! DON'T YOU EVER DO THAT AGAIN! I CAN'T BEAR THE THOUGHT OF LOSING YOU! I LOV—"

She suddenly stopped. "What did you say?" Chuck asked. She said nothing, just stared at him as she kept her grip on the front of his shirt. Then she jerked him forward and mashed her lips against him, kissing him passionately and hotly.

The memory stopped and Chuck shook his head. Sarah was still standing there with her arms crossed. "Now Chuck!" she said and stepped aside to let him pass. He walked to the bedroom and she followed. He wasn't sure why but he found her assertiveness very exciting.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Chuck lay in bed wide awake, Sarah beside him asleep. After she led him back from the kitchen, they had gone to bed. When they were both under the covers, she moved a little closer to him and then reached out with her hand, grabbed his and held on to it. They lay like that, holding hands. It felt nice, very nice, Chuck thought and wondered why he had panicked.

Sarah had quickly fallen asleep but Chuck found that he couldn't. Sleep just wouldn't come. After an hour and still feeling wide awake, he slowly pulled his hand free and quietly got out of bed. Sarah stirred but did not wake. He walked out to the living room and sat on the couch. The thought occurred to him that if he was some sort of spy as Sarah had hinted to him yesterday in the hospital, that this whole thing could be a setup. The secret agent wakes up and finds himself married to a beautiful woman he has never seen before. It's all a plot, a scheme to get the agent to reveal some big secret or something.

He remembered seeing a few movies and TV shows with plots like that. While he thought that such a plot was possible, he didn't think that such a thing was within any realm of possibility for him. Chuck Bartowski, ace Nerd Herder – what sort of secrets or info could he have that would get someone to go these lengths? he thought.

And if someone had concocted all this, they certainly had done a great job, he concluded. Sarah seemed totally and completely smitten with him. If she was pretending or acting, she certainly deserved an Oscar. And the girl, Sallie, looked incredibly like a combination of him and Sarah. And combining the "Sa" from Sarah and the "llie" from Ellie for her name? That was just the sort of thing he'd do.

But he still pondered how someone as attractive as Sarah would fall for him. How in the world did that happen? Girls who looked like that usually acted nice to him when they needed their computers or phones or something else fixed. Once the repair was done, that was it. Quite right Chuck, a little voice inside his head noted, so why are you wasting time sitting out here on this couch instead lying in that bed with that beautiful girl?

Chuck couldn't answer that question.

END PART 4


	5. Conversations

CHUCK VS. THE MISSING MEMORIES

DISCLAIMER: I don't own "Chuck."

SUMMARY: It's 10 years in the future and when Chuck wakes up after an accident, he doesn't remember any of the past 10 years including the intersect and all of the changes that have occurred in his life.

NOTE: In case you're wondering, this story does NOT end with everything being a dream.

PART 5 - CONVERSATIONS

It was dark again. But this time, the noise was louder and he thought he could see something. The image that was so far away last time seemed closer, clearer. It was still hard to tell what it was but it was definitely louder. And there were images. They too seemed closer and a little clearer. What were they? They seemed important. He tried to get closer and ….

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A small set of eyes stared right into his.

"Daddy?" Sallie said.

He was lying on the couch. He had fallen asleep there and he had that dream again.

"Daddy?" Sallie repeated.

"Yes Sallie?"

"Can I have cereal?"

"Sure." Chuck got up, stretched, and led her to the kitchen. He looked through several cabinets before he finally found one with cereal boxes and other food in it. He grabbed a box of cereal from the cabinet. The box felt light. He checked. Low but enough for both of them. Then he checked other cabinets and drawers for bowls and spoons.

They sat at the table, ate cereal and took turns making slurping sounds with the milk and crunching noises with the cereal. Sallie delighted in hearing his especially exaggerated slurping and crunching. She giggled a lot in between bites. Then there was a noise behind them. Sallie looked up and squealed "Hi mommy!"

"Hey sweetie," Sarah said as she walked into the dining room. She reached out and ruffled Sallie's hair. She walked to the coffee pot and started some coffee. Chuck looked at her. She looked tired and upset, he thought.

Sarah turned toward the two of them. "Sallie, please go to your room and get ready for swimming. Then play in your room. We'll come get you in a little while and go to your lessons. I need to talk to your father alone," she said.

"Uh oh, daddy's in trouble," the youngster said as she got out of the chair and wandered off to her room.

Sarah sat down at the table next to Chuck and looked at him. She looked very serious, he thought.

"I believe the expression on your face is what I've seen on some sitcoms. The husbands on those shows refer to it as 'The Look,'" Chuck joked.

Sarah smiled slightly and shook her head. "You could always find some humor no matter what the situation. That's one of the many things I love about you," she said.

Then she turned serious. "Chuck, what I am going to tell you are things you already knew but have forgotten because of this amnesia. But I need to tell them to you again." Sarah sighed and pushed back a stray lock of blonde hair.

"My parents divorced when I was young, Chuck. It hurt me and affected me a lot. In the time leading up to their divorce, they started doing things that told me that something was not right, that they weren't happy. One of those things was that they stopped sleeping together. I'd get up in the morning and find my father sleeping on the couch or in a chair or in another room. It hurt me to see my parents' love for each other fading away. I don't want Sallie to see things like you sleeping on the couch, avoiding her mother and make her think that her parents don't love each other. Especially when they are not true."

Sarah paused for a moment and took a deep breathe and rubbed her eyes. She took another moment and then continued.

"You don't remember what my job used to be, what I used to do. But during those days, I had a lot of trouble sleeping. It was rare that I got a good night's sleep. After I met you and later, after we became … romantically involved, we slept together. Sleeping with you was and is wonderful. Your presence, your body, your skin, your smell – that comforts me and makes me feel safe and loved.

"I know that you don't feel right in sleeping with me because you don't remember who I am. You're Chuck and you have never hopped in the sack with someone you don't know. That's not right to you and I think that's noble. That's another thing I love about you. But Chuck, you're not knowing who I am is torture to me. I miss my Chuck, I want him back. I know it could take time. But until then, please don't push me away."

She paused again and then affixed him with serious look.

"So now that you understand the situation, I want it made clear that even with your memory gone, you WILL be sleeping in our room, in our bed WITH me! We don't have to make love – but that option is open. You can be fully clothed if you want. But you will NOT be sleeping out on the couch or in another room from here on. I want and need you beside me and with me."

What she just said made him feel bad. Even though he couldn't remember this woman, the fact that he had done something that had hurt her touched and affected him. He reached out and pressed his hand onto hers and looked directly into her eyes.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. "I don't know you because of this amnesia." He saw her flinch slightly as he said that. "It's hard for me to believe that someone like you would even give me a second glance. You are so beautiful and I don't know why you would want to be with me. But what you just said to me … it made me feel bad that I hurt you."

He looked down at his hand upon hers. "I feel something when I touch you or when you touch me. Some sort of connection or something. I wish I had my memory back because I think I am missing out on the most wonderful part of my life."

Sarah smiled, leaned close to him and kissed him. "Get showered and dressed Chuck. We need to take our daughter to her swimming lessons."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"She's three-years-old and she's taking swimming lessons?" Chuck asked as the three of them walked up to the pool. Along the way, he could see several other parents with youngsters in bathing suits.

"'Water Babies,' Chuck," Sarah replied. "The program is called 'Water Babies,' where they take young kids and get them used to the water. Sallie found out about the program when she heard some of her friends in day care talking about it and begged to be in it. You and I talked and decided that it would be a good thing." She sighed.

Chuck turned to her. She looked exhausted. "Are you sure you should have come to this? Maybe you should have stayed home and rested."

"I'll be OK," she replied. "I'll sit down if you'll just take her up to the pool edge with the other kids and the instructors will take over from there. Then come back. I may need your shoulder for a pillow." Chuck took Sallie's hand and led her to the pool. "And stay within my sight!" Sarah added. Chuck figured that she wasn't talking about Sallie.

Father and daughter walked toward the pool edge. Chuck could see four other kids about Sallie's age there and ready to go in the water on the shallow end. There were two swimming instructors, a male and female. "Hi Chuck! Hi Sallie!" they both said. Chuck didn't recognize either of them. He started to say hello back but then bumped into another man who was walking with a young boy.

"Sorry about that," the man said, "I was too busy talking to my son instead of looking where I was going."

"No problem," Chuck replied. And then he got a good, full look at the man's face and suddenly images popped up in his mind – he saw that man's picture in a file and lists of all sorts of missions, he saw images of that man shooting a gun, he saw bodies and explosions and then as quickly as it begun, it stopped and he was standing by the pool holding Sallie's hand.

"Daddy?" Sarah asked looking up at him. Chuck shook his head and turned and led Sallie over to the other youngsters waiting to get into the water.

"Daddy, are you and mommy going to watch me?" Sallie asked with a hopeful expression.

"Of course! We'll be right over there," Chuck said and pointed over to the left where Sarah was seated on a bench with other parents. "OK?"

Sallie nodded and Chuck went over the bench. What the heck were all of those pictures I imagined? he wondered. He thought about telling Sarah about them but when he got closer to her, he could see that she still looked tired. He decided to wait. He sat down by Sarah and she slid closer to him, looped one arm through his and then leaned her head onto his shoulder. "Are you sure you're OK?" Chuck asked.

"Umm hmmm, just want to rest against you. Mind?"

Mind? Mind? It was a dream come true for him to have someone who looked like Sarah leaning against him. They spent the entire class like that. Chuck watched Sallie and to his amazement, she was good in the water. Even though so young, she seemed athletically inclined. "Now she had to inherit that from you NOT me," Chuck said to Sarah. She didn't reply. She had dozed off. He felt a little guilty, thinking her exhaustion was his fault after hearing her talk this morning.

The class ended and Chuck nudged Sarah awake. She shook her head and apologized. "It's OK," Chuck said. "You sit here and I'll go get Sallie." He turned and walked toward the pool. Halfway there, he felt a vibration in his right pants pocket. It was a cell phone in vibration mode. But I don't have a cell phone with me, Chuck thought. Yet, one had magically appeared in his pocket and he had a call.

He pulled it out and answered it. "Hello?"

"Mr. Bartowski, do you want the intersect back?" a male voice that Chuck didn't recognize asked.

"Who is this?"

"You do want the intersect back don't you? We can help with that. We'll be in touch soon."

The caller hung up. He looked at the phone to see if there was any ID. It just said unknown number.

"CHUCK! Who were you talking to?" Sarah demanded.

He jumped at her voice and turned around. She was standing right behind him, wide awake, looking concerned, VERY concerned.

"Who were you talking to?" she repeated. "And where did you get that phone?"

"I don't know," he replied.

She snatched the phone from him and examined it.

"Sarah?" he said. She looked up from the phone at him. "What's the intersect?" he asked.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sarah didn't answer his question. But she immediately got both him and Sallie back to the car and then home as quickly as possible. She unlocked the front door to house, walked in and disabled the alarm as Sallie dashed past her. Chuck asked her again, "Sarah, what's the intersect?"

She turned toward him. "You are the intersect. It's everything and you're in charge of it," she replied. Chuck walked down the front hallway of their house and suddenly he saw himself somewhere else, some big room that had wall-to-wall screens, computers, servers and all sorts of electronic equipment.

Sarah was with him. She looked at Chuck proudly as she waved her arm around the room and pronounced "This is it! It's all yours now!"

"All mine?" he asked.

"Well, you'll be one of the main people on it. And you'll have a staff working for you."

"I'll have a staff?"

"Chuck, this is important. Ever since you got the intersect in your head, they've tried to rebuild it several times and failed every time. And they finally wised up and want you to work on it. Who would be better to rebuild and maintain the intersect than the man who knows it better than anyone? The man who has the intersect! Plus, who knows computers better?"

"I'm good with computers but not that good."

"Don't be modest Chuck. You're better than most of the techs that we have. You'll be fine. The intersect will be in good hands now – your hands!"

Then he was back in his house walking into the living room. Sallie wanted to watch television. Sarah put the TV on a cartoon network and then motioned Chuck to the kitchen. Once there, she held up the phone. "Where did you get this?" she asked.

"I don't know. It's not mine."

"I know it's not yours. You weren't carrying a cell phone. You have no idea where it came from?"

"No!"

Sarah rubbed one hand through her hair and was quiet for a moment. "Did anything unusual or strange happen at the pool? Did you see anything or did anyone talk to you?"

"No … wait … yes. When I bumped into this guy and saw his face, all of these weird images popped up in my mind and …"

Sarah was instantly alert. "You flashed on someone at the pool?"

"You've used that word before. What do you mean 'flashed'? What are you talking about?"

She hesitated before speaking. "You have the intersect in your head. You've … retained all of its information and data. When you see certain people or things relating to certain people, that information … pops up -- flashes -- in your mind. If you flashed on that man … you said that he bumped into you … he could have planted this phone on you then."

He waited for a punch line, laugh, smirk or anything from her that would get to the end of the joke. But it never came. She looked very serious but Chuck was skeptical.

"Spi fi?"

"Chuck, it isn't spi fi, it's real."

And then she added. "This is important. You need to tell me right away whenever you flash on anyone and something from the intersect comes up!"

Chuck thought about those movies he once saw where the secret agent wakes up and finds himself married to some sort of beautiful woman he has never seen before and it turns out to be a plot to get the agent to reveal some big secret. Apparently, he did have a big secret. He tried to remember the titles of those movies because he now wondered which one he was in.

END PART 5


	6. Sarah

CHUCK VS. THE MISSING MEMORIES

DISCLAIMER: I don't own "Chuck."

SUMMARY: It's 10 years in the future and when Chuck wakes up after an accident, he doesn't remember any of the past 10 years including the intersect and all of the changes that have occurred in his life.

NOTE: In case you're wondering, this story does NOT end with everything being a dream. Thank you to all reviewers! Keep them coming!

PART 6 - SARAH

The rest of the day was spent at home. Chuck watched cartoons with Sallie. But he didn't recognize any of them. When he asked her if she had ever seen Scooby Doo, she looked at him quizzically.

"Duck Tales?" he then asked.

She shook her head no.

"X-Men? Spider-Man?"

Another shake of the head.

He gave up and watched what she was watching. At one point in the day, Sarah spent quite a while on the phone and from the snatches of conversation that Chuck heard, he guessed that she was talking to somebody about him. It made him feel bad that he caused trouble for her.

Ellie and Devon came by for a visit and while they were there, Sarah announced that she needed to run an errand and would be back in a while. She didn't say where but Chuck once again guessed it had something to do with him. He also noticed that Sarah asked Ellie and Devon to keep an eye on him, not Sallie.

While Devon settled down on the couch to watch the cartoons with Sallie, Ellie motioned Chuck into the kitchen.

"So? Everything going OK?" she asked.

"I guess," he replied.

"You still can't remember anything?"

"Well, I've had some … flashes," he said using Sarah's word, "of memories here and there. But this is all so unreal to me."

"Why would this be unreal?" she asked looking puzzled. "Do you think Devon and I are not real?"

"No! It's just …."

"What? Tell me!" she urged.

He sighed. "If this is real, how in the world did I end up with a wife who looks like that?"

"Chuck, she fell in love with you because you're you!" Ellie replied.

He snorted. Ellie continued. "Chuck, you don't remember right now but I do. She really liked you from the start. I remember when I first met her and saw how she looked at you. And I also remember the times that she got pretty jealous."

"Jealous of what?" Chuck asked incredulously.

Ellie's eyes twinkled as she did an imitation of Sarah. "Brunettes! It's always brunettes!"

A memory suddenly popped up in his mind. He was seated at the dining room table at the apartment. Sarah sat beside him. Across the table were Ellie and Devon. They were all eating salad while Ellie talked. Chuck picked at his salad and tried to listen to Ellie, anything to avoid the contemptuous looks that Sarah kept giving him. Sarah was mad – really mad at him. But he wasn't sure why.

As she talked, Ellie kept looking from Chuck to Sarah, from Sarah to Chuck. She sighed.

"OK, Sarah, Chuck -- what's going on? What's wrong?"

"Nothing!" both said at the same time.

"Did you two have a fight?" Ellie persisted.

"We're fine!" they said in harmony.

Ellie, unconvinced, looked directly at Chuck from across the table. "Chuck, did something happen that upset you and Sarah?"

"I didn't do anything," he quickly replied.

"Hah!" Sarah muttered. And then she glared at Chuck and snapped: "Brunettes! It's always brunettes!"

"What?!!?" Chuck said.

Ellie stood up from the table and walked over to where Chuck and Sarah sat. She grabbed each by the arm and steered them to sit on the couch next to each other. "I invited the two of you over here for a nice dinner. A dinner which I'll add I went to great lengths and great trouble to make. You two are ruining everything. Talk to each other and settle this and then let's enjoy dinner. You two love each other too much to let a silly argument come between you."

Chuck started to protest about doing this but Ellie shot him a warning look. Then she walked back to the table and sat down next to Devon, who spoke. "I'd do what she says if I were you. The same thing happened to some friends of mine and she didn't let them leave until they settled things. You know how stubborn and persistent Ellie is!"

Chuck let out a long sigh. He did know how stubborn and persistent Ellie was. He turned to Sarah who was sitting very stiffly on the couch with her arms and legs crossed. "He's right," he said. Then he lowered his voice so that Ellie and Devon couldn't hear. "We're going to have to talk or pretend to talk about this if we don't want to sit on this couch all night."

Sarah waited a while before speaking. When she did, she also kept her voice low. "Would you like me better if I were a brunette?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Brunettes! It's always brunettes!"

"Repeat mode – what are you talking about?"

Sarah gritted her teeth. "Your girl friend in college was a brunette and you got back together with her. You once broke up with me to be with that brunette sandwich slicer, you tangoed with the brunette bimbo, you seemed to really enjoy having that brunette F.B.I. bodyguard with you on that one case, those last weeks you worked at the BuyMore you spent every second with that new brunette employee and today at the inter –." She stopped herself from saying 'intersect" just in time.

"And today at the office, when I came to pick you up for this dinner, I found you with that brunette draped all over you while you were supposedly WORKING. Why is it always brunettes?" Sarah finished.

"OK, I'm a little confused here. You know very well what happened with everyone of those brunettes. What's the big deal? I was with Jill way before I met you and when she came back into my life, you and I weren't together. I broke up with you to date the 'sandwich slicer' because there was no real relationship with you. The relationship with you was pretend, fake! I tangoed with that lady because it was part of the assignment. I didn't choose to have that F.B.I. agent guard me during that case, in fact, I didn't have a choice. I spent so much time with that new employee at the BuyMore during my last weeks there because she was my replacement and I had to train her. And the brunette at work – Cindy – is a co-worker, nothing more! The server was acting up and we were leaning in together through the hatch to fix it. It required four hands, the hatch was small, and we had to lean in close to one another in order to fix that."

"She's always doing things like that! Every time I visit you, she's always there and she's always touching you or leaning against you or something!" Sarah snapped.

An idea, a realization suddenly leaped forth in Chuck's mind about what might be going on here. But he couldn't believe it. It couldn't be, could it? But he said it out loud.

"Are you jealous?" Sarah jealous? No freaking way, he thought.

Sarah didn't say anything for a minute and stared straight ahead, not turning toward Chuck. She still kept her arms and legs crossed. "I just think that in order to maintain our cover as girl friend and BOY FRIEND, you should NOT be flirting with other women," she finally said.

"I was not flirting!" he fired back. And after a few seconds, he added, "And I thought we didn't need to have that cover at the 'office.' I'm right there in the headquarters building with a bunch of other agents. I spend all day there. So what's the point of that boy friend-girl friend cover?"

Sarah still stared straight ahead and didn't look at Chuck. He wasn't sure but he thought he saw her lip tremble a little. When she finally spoke, she spoke so softly that Chuck barely heard her.

"So you don't want me around any more?"

"I don't want a fake relationship. I told you my feelings several times and every time you pushed me away or your job got in the way. There was that time that I thought we were really getting close and that you might actually have feelings for me. But then Bryce warned me that your feelings for me could get you killed. So I backed off and ended it all to protect you."

Sarah's eyes flashed with anger as she turned toward Chuck. "And you thought it was a good idea to listen to HIM? He didn't seem so concerned about my feelings for him putting me in danger when I was with him. And I do NOT want Bryce dictating to you or me about our feelings or our relationship. I also think whenever ANYONE gives you advice about us, you should discuss it with me before making any STUPID or RASH decisions. Do you know how hurt I was when you broke up with me that time? I had no idea you were thinking that you were protecting me or trying to keep me from getting hurt. I thought that you had stopped liking … loving me. It really hurt me, it hurt me so much when you did that!"

"And how do you think I felt? I didn't want to do that but I didn't want to get you killed! I've always wanted a relationship with you – a REAL relationship. But you …." Chuck stopped and shook his head.

She looked down at the floor. Then she uncrossed her arms. After a moment, she placed one hand on his shoulder and looked directly into his eyes. "What if I wanted that too?" she asked.

Chuck was stunned. What was she saying? He thought. Then he said out loud "Are you serious?"

Sarah lunged at him and pushed him down on the couch and kissed him intensely. They were kissing, groping, and moaning when Ellie interrupted them.

"HEY!" she yelled. Sarah leaned up from the couch where she had Chuck pinned down on his back and several buttons of his shirt undone. They were both panting.

Ellie looked like she didn't know what to say but finally asked meekly "Do you two want to eat now or later?"

"Later!" Sarah said huskily. And with that, she stood up from the couch, pulled Chuck up with her. And then she grabbed him with both of her hands and marched him toward his room. A grin broke out on Chuck's face as he heard Devon say to Ellie "Don't worry babe, the food won't go to waste. They'll want to eat after!"

Where the heck did that come from? Chuck wondered as that memory ended and he found himself back in the kitchen with Ellie.

"Chuck, you looked like you were far, far away. What happened?" Ellie asked.

"I guess a memory popped up. At least I guess it's a memory. Or maybe it's a fantasy," he said.

"What was it?"

He told her, at least a water-downed version. But when Ellie was able to fill in details that he left out, he realized it was indeed a real memory.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sarah returned and they all had dinner together. They sat in the living room afterwards, talking. Later in the evening, it was time for Sallie to go to bed. They took care of that and returned to the living room and talked more with Ellie and Devon.

As the evening went on, Chuck could feel Sarah leaning heavily against him as they sat on the couch. He turned toward her and she slumped down. He grabbed her and then lowered her head down to his lap.

"Sorry! She's exhausted," Chuck said to Ellie and Devon who looked a little concerned.

Ellie nodded. "She was so worried and frantic about you after your accident. She practically spent every night at the hospital in your room while you were in that coma. I'll bet she hasn't gotten much sleep lately." Then she turned to Devon. "Let's go and let her get some rest." They said their good nights and left.

Chuck stared down at the sleeping Sarah who was curled up on the couch next to him with her head in his lap. She needed to get to bed, he decided. He started to move her but Sarah groaned a soft "No!" and clung tightly to him.

"Sarah! Come on! Let's get you to bed. You're exhausted and you need to get to sleep," he said as he stood up and picked her up with him.

She clung to him as he walked her out of the living room and down the hallway to their bedroom. Once there, he put her gently onto the bed. She curled there and Chuck wondered what to do next.

Well, I can at least remove her shoes, he thought and did that.

There was still the matter of her clothes. He sat down beside her on the bed pondering whether or not to remove her pants and blouse. They were married, he thought, but should he do this? As if reading his thoughts, her hand reached up and gripped his arm.

"It's OK! Get my nightgown out of that drawer and help me get undressed and ready for bed," she said.

He reached over to the drawer and pulled out the nightgown that was on top. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself up into a sitting position. Then she grasped both of his hands and directed them to the top button on her blouse.

Chuck hesitated but finally undid the buttons and removed her blouse. He started to put the nightgown on over her but she stopped him by putting her arms around his neck and pulling him in close and kissing him. Then her lips traveled along his cheek and up to his left ear, which she kissed and nibbled. "My bra," she said huskily as she continued her lip attack on his ear.

He had a lot of trouble concentrating on what to do as her lips felt incredible and were so distracting. He finally moved his hands around and onto her back, feeling her skin as his hands went to the bra snaps. Her skin felt incredible, he thought. Sarah sighed as his hands rubbed along her back and eventually came to the snaps of the bra. He undid them.

Her lips departed from his ear, she unclasped her hands from around his neck and leaned back to let him pull off her bra. He quickly grabbed the nightgown and pulled it through her raised arms and put it on her. After which she wrapped her arms around his neck again and kissed him. She kissed him several times and then traveled to his right ear and started another lip assault.

"Pants," Sarah commanded and she lay back down on the bed and propped up her legs. He undid the button, the zipper and pulled her pants off. Then she reached up and pulled him down for another kiss.

"Tuck me in," she said softly.

He pulled the covers down and helped her under them. And every step of the way, she took every opportunity to touch and kiss him some more. She snuggled into the bed as he sat beside her.

"Thank you!" she whispered. "Come to bed."

"I will," Chuck replied. As soon as it gets cooler in here, he thought.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He had the dream again. And this time, things weren't so far away. He could see what was happening. It was in some sort of office. Computers and all kinds of equipment were on desks and on shelves. There was smoke and he heard gunfire and yelling and explosions. And he saw himself at a computer terminal and a man running up to him. The man had a gun and he screamed "BARTOWSKI!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"CHUCK!"

Sarah's voice woke him up. It was still night and he was in bed with her. She was leaning over him, gripping his shoulders, looking very worried.

"Chuck!" she said again. "What happened? Did you have a nightmare?"

He shook his head trying to clear it, trying to figure out what he had just seen. It felt important but he couldn't remember why.

"Chuck?" Sarah asked again.

"I keep having this dream or nightmare. I've been having it ever since …." He paused, trying to remember when it started.

Sarah leaned down beside him, reached over with her hand and stroked his hair and face. "Just tell me what you remember," she asked.

He told her about the dream and when he finished, she kept quiet for a moment and continued stroking his hair and face. "I think it's time to tell you everything," she said.

Sarah went back to the beginning, telling him how he had gotten the intersect into his head back in 2007 from an email and how she, a CIA agent, had come to Los Angeles to track it down. Then she told him how she had been assigned to protect him, and how he, with the intersect in his head, helped her and John Casey of the NSA. She explained how the CIA and NSA had tried several times to rebuild the intersect and failed every time, and how after so many failures, they finally decided to put Chuck in charge of rebuilding it. He had succeeded and that became his full-time job. He maintained the intersect with his staff and still did.

She also told him that when she had been assigned to protect him, her cover for that was to pretend to be his girl friend. But as time went on, the cover had become real. They developed feelings for each other and that blossomed into love and eventually marriage.

It all seemed so crazy to Chuck but Sarah never laughed.

"So what happened? What's going on now?" Chuck asked.

"The intersect, the one that you built is gone. The office, the building where it was kept, where you and your staff worked on it and kept it going, was attacked. There was a battle and after it was all over, the intersect was gone. There was nothing on the servers or computers. We don't know what happened to it. We don't know if they got to it, downloaded it and took it or if you have it or hid it somewhere," she said.

Chuck didn't know either.

Sarah then moved closer to him, put her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her. "Are you still a spy? Do you still protect me?"

"No," she replied. "After we married, I transferred to a different section of the CIA. I do different, safer work now. It has more regular hours but it's not as exciting."

"So you miss being a super spy?"

She looked up at him and smiled. "Sometimes I miss it but not often. I think back to the excitement of that life and then I look at you and I look at our daughter and I know that I made the right decision."

She lay her head back on his chest and they went back to sleep that way.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When Chuck woke up that morning, something didn't seem right. He glanced at Sarah and she seemed … well, he thought, something was wrong. He shook her shoulder but she groaned and huddled more under the sheets.

"Sarah? Are you OK?" he asked.

She seemed to struggle to get up or answer and unable to generate the strength to do either. Chuck gripped her arms and pulled her up to a sitting position. She groaned and slumped against him. He felt her forehead.

"You're burning up," he said. He looked closely at her. She was definitely ill. He needed to get her to a doctor but he didn't know who their doctor was or how to get there. "Sarah, I'm going to call Ellie and get her over here to check on you," he said. Sarah managed to nod in agreement as Chuck gently lowered her back down on the bed.

Chuck grabbed the phone but stopped. He didn't know Ellie's number. Speed dial, he thought. He started at 1 and kept going until the readout said "Ellie/Devon."

"Hi Sarah!" Ellie answered after the third ring.

"Ellie, it's Chuck."

Ellie's tone turned to concern. "Is something wrong?"

"Sarah's sick. She's burning up. I … I don't know who our doctor is or where to take her –" Chuck replied, trying to control the panic he felt as he looked down at Sarah.

"Chuck, stay calm. Devon and I will be there in 15 minutes. We're on the way." She hung up.

He gripped Sarah's face with both hands. Her eyes opened. She looked weak. "Ellie and Devon are on the way! It will be OK! Do you need anything? Is there anything I can do?" he asked.

"Sallie! Make sure Sallie's OK," she replied weakly.

He had been so concerned about Sarah that he had forgotten about their daughter. He rushed to Sallie's room. She was awake and playing with some toys on the floor. She looked up at Chuck.

"Hi daddy!" she said brightly. "Want to play with me?"

"I can't right now Sallie. Mommy isn't feeling too well, so I need to keep an eye on her. Are you feeling OK? Do you feel bad or anything?"

She shook her head.

"OK, just go ahead and keep playing right now. I need to keep an eye on mommy. OK?"

"OK," she said and resumed her playing.

Chuck rushed back to their bedroom and sat down on the bed beside Sarah. He grabbed her hand and held it.

Suddenly, the room changed into the back of an EMS unit that sped along the streets with siren wailing. He was in there holding Sarah's hand as she lay on a stretcher with a bloody face and an IV in her. A paramedic was checking a bloody spot on one arm.

"Hold on Sarah! Hold on! We're almost there! Hold on!" Chuck said.

Her eyes opened and they moved back and forth, searching. "Chuck?" she said.

"Right here! Right here!" he said and moved his head above her face so that she could see him.

She coughed and then looked at him. "Don't leave me! Stay with me! Please don't leave me!" she begged.

"You DON'T leave me! You STAY with me!" he commanded. "You're going to be OK! You hear me! You're going to be OK!"

The image blurred and then he was back in their bedroom holding Sarah's hand. He felt himself trembling at the thought of Sarah in danger or suffering.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Devon and Ellie got there in less than 15 minutes. Ellie immediately went into the bedroom to check on Sarah while Chuck waited frantically. Devon stayed in Sallie's room, keeping an eye on her.

About 10 minutes later, Ellie talked to Chuck. "It's OK!" she assured him. "There's a bug going around and Sarah has it. It usually lasts about a day. So she will probably be fine tomorrow. Most likely, she'll sleep for most of today. Just take care of her, try to get her to eat and drink if she wants." She stopped and looked at him closely. "Are you OK?"

He had been really worried, he realized, when he had seen Sarah so sick. It had affected him. And that image that he saw of Sarah injuried in an EMS. That had scared him, really scared him.

"I just panicked, got so worried when I saw her ill and then I realized that I didn't know the doctor or her or her medical history or whatever. She needed me and I was helpless. What if I had taken her to a doctor or clinic and they gave her a penicillin shot and I didn't know if she was allergic to penicillin. I could have made things worse or …." He looked down and saw that his hands were shaking.

Ellie grasped his hands. "Chuck! It's OK! She will be fine. It's just a 24-hour bug."

"I know," he rambled, "I just got so worried and frantic about her, I felt so scared. I don't know why I got so scared!" He shook his head trying to make things clearer.

Ellie looked directly at him and smiled. "It's called being in love, Chuck!"

"Why can't I remember my wife, the woman I love, the woman who loves me? Why can't I remember our daughter? Why did I have to lose that memory? Why couldn't I have lost the memory of what happened at Stanford or working at the BuyMore instead? Why? Why did I have to lose the memory of my wife and daughter?" All of it was gushing out of Chuck like a tidal wave. He found it hard to stop and he could feel himself trembling.

"Chuck! Chuck! CHUCK!" Ellie's voice finally penetrated to him and he stopped. Ellie held his face with both of her hands and looked directly at him.

"This memory problem is only temporary. You will regain your memories. You haven't lost them. They are just buried. Remember the other night? You remembered that time Sarah got jealous! Your memories of her, your daughter, everything will come back! You love her and you love your daughter! Love like that doesn't disappear!"

Ellie hugged Chuck and he was finally able to stop trembling.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sarah slept almost all day and through the evening. Ellie and Devon stayed and helped out. They left after Sallie went to bed. Chuck checked on Sarah. She was still sleeping. He had spent most of the day sitting on the side of the bed and watching her and holding her hand and stroking her hair.

A few times, she opened her eyes, saw him and smiled. Once she tried to get out of bed on her own and promptly collapsed back down on the bed. He helped her sit up but a few minutes later, she was asleep and he put her back down.

He got ready for bed and then climbed in. Ellie had cautioned him that the bug could spread to him and/or Sallie. But right now, he didn't care. He wanted to be near her.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Later, in the early morning hours, she woke up. She seemed to be in a panic or scared or something.

"Chuck?" she moaned and tried to rise out of the bed. He reached out and gripped her. "Right here! It's OK! It's OK!" he said.

He pulled Sarah against him and put his arms around her. She rolled over and buried her head against his chest. Chuck stroked her shoulders, head and hair. "Feeling any better?" he asked in a whisper.

Sarah groaned in response.

"Well, hang in there. Hopefully, it will run its course and be over by morning." He stroked the top and back of her head gently and then asked if she needed or wanted anything.

"Just you," she said, "don't go."

"I won't," he promised and he pulled her closer to him.

They fell asleep that way.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sarah was up and active by the time Chuck rose from bed in the morning. He could smell some wonderful aromas coming from the kitchen. He went and found Sallie sitting at the dining room table drinking juice and Sarah cooking.

"Good morning!" she said brightly upon seeing Chuck.

"Hi daddy!" Sallie yelled.

"Hi Sallie!" Chuck answered and he leaned down and gave his daughter a hug. She responded happily and kissed him on the cheek. He rose and found Sarah had moved alongside of him.

"Now me!" she said as she wrapped her arms around his neck and drew him in for a long and loving kiss. She leaned her head against his chest. Chuck put his arms around her. She looked well. He felt relieved.

"You're certainly looking better. I'm glad," he said.

She looked up at him. "Thank you!"

"For what?" he asked.

"For taking care of me, taking care of everything while I was sick yesterday."

"Well, I think you better thank Ellie and Devon for that. They helped a lot."

"But it was you who sat by me on the bed during the day and held my hand. It was you who held me during the night and made me feel loved. And it was you who checked on me and made sure that I had what I needed or wanted." She kissed him again. "Sallie wanted cereal this morning but we're out. So I'm making waffles and sausage."

"So that's what smells so good," Chuck said with a glance toward the stove.

"Yes! Have a seat. They're almost ready. And after breakfast, we had better go to the grocery store. We're not only out of Sallie's favorite cereal but other things as well."

END PART 6


	7. Incidents

CHUCK VS. THE MISSING MEMORIES

DISCLAIMER: I don't own "Chuck."

SUMMARY: It's 10 years in the future and when Chuck wakes up after an accident, he doesn't remember any of the past 10 years including the intersect and all of the changes that have occurred in his life.

NOTE: In case you're wondering, this story does NOT end with everything being a dream. Thank you again to all you reviewers! Your comments are appreciated!

PART 7 - INCIDENTS

After breakfast and showers, they all got into the car and traveled to the grocery store, a store chain that Chuck didn't recognize. With Sallie seated in the shopping cart, Chuck pushing the cart and Sarah walking alongside, they went from aisle to aisle getting what they needed. After about 30 minutes, they headed toward checkout. And then Chuck remembered what had brought up the grocery store trip.

"We forgot the cereal. I'll go back and get it," Chuck said and turned to go.

"Chuck! We can go back together," Sarah said.

"We're in a grocery store. I'm just going to that aisle to get a box of cereal. What could possibly happen?" he snorted. He turned to go but then Sallie started begging as she held at her arms.

"Up! Up! Up! Me too daddy! I want to go! Up! Up! Up!"

"OK! OK!" Chuck said as he picked up Sallie and carried her with him. He noticed that Sarah looked dubious but she said nothing and let them walk off.

He found the cereal aisle and looked. "That one daddy!" Sallie said pointing at one box. Then she pointed at another one. "That one daddy!" That routine went on down the entire aisle. Three employees working on the aisle looked at the pair. When he passed them, he finally spotted the cereal that Sallie actually ate. He reached for a box and then heard a click of metal and a voice.

"Mr. Bartowski, you'll need to come with us. We need to talk about the intersect." Chuck turned and about three feet away was a man holding a gun. It was one of the store employees who had been there when Chuck and Sallie walked down the aisle. Chuck glanced past him. The other two were at the other end of the aisle, looking around, making sure that no one interfered.

"Come on Mr. Bartowski," the man said. "Let's go!"

"OK. But just let me put my daughter down. She doesn't have to go too, OK" Chuck said.

Before the man could reply, out of nowhere a can of food hit him squarely in the face with the velocity and force of a professional baseball pitch. It hit him with a loud pop and he fell to the floor.

Chuck turned to look where the throw had come from and saw a blonde fury crash into the other two men and proceed to hit and kick them before they could react. It was Sarah, Chuck realized and she reminded him of all the super heroines and warrior women he had seen in comic books, movies and TV. She was incredible. The two men didn't have a chance.

He heard a noise alongside him. The man who had been hit by the can Sarah threw was getting up and aiming his gun at her.

Sarah! Chuck panicked. The thought of Sarah in trouble, in danger caused something to explode inside him. And without thinking, he gripped Sallie tighter with his arms and then leveled the man with a fast and furious series of kicks. He fell to the ground and stayed there, not moving at all.

How in the heck did I do that? Chuck thought.

He turned toward Sarah, who had the two men subdued. She looked at Chuck, smiled and nodded slightly at him. He looked at Sallie, still cradled in his arms. She squealed with delight and yelled "Again!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"How did I do that?" Chuck asked Sarah when they had finally gotten home.

Seconds after they had subdued those men in the grocery store, about five men and women appeared with guns drawn and ready for action. But there was no action. He and Sarah had taken care of it and this group of people just halted and stared.

"Where were you? You were supposed to be watching my husband!" Sarah hissed at them.

The group quickly took care of things, carting off the attackers, explaining to and calming down the management of the grocery store about what had just happened, and getting Sarah, Chuck and Sallie out of there and on their way home. After they unloaded the groceries and Sallie from the car and settled down on the couch, Chuck asked his question.

"You know self defense, combat training, attack moves and all that. You just don't remember. Your instincts must have kicked in and you reacted when I was threatened," she said. He thought he detected a trace of pride in her voice when she said that last part.

"Well, you didn't look like you needed any help. You were fantastic!" he said.

"You're every bit as good as I am. You've just forgotten right now. We've sparred ever now and then. I always win but I think you're holding back on me. I think you like how our little matches end and where we end up." And with that, she smiled very seductively at Chuck and rubbed her hand on his thigh.

Uhhhh, did I take lessons or something?" he asked.

She nodded. "After we had worked together for a while but before we were married. You didn't tell me about them. You snuck off to those lessons and I didn't know what you were doing or where you were going. I got really worried that you were seeing another woman."

"You're kidding!"

Sarah shook her head. "I was so afraid and concerned about it that I secretly followed you one time and discovered what was going on. I was relieved that you weren't having an affair but then I got a little upset when I saw the instructor."

"What was wrong with him?"

"HER," Sarah corrected. "I did NOT like how she kept putting her hands all over you and pressing herself against you so much. So I convinced you to let me give you lessons. And you were a VERY GOOD student." She arched her eyebrows as she smiled seductively again and rubbed his thigh some more.

Chuck wasn't sure that she was talking about self defense.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Daddy?" Sallie asked looking up at Chuck. She had walked into the living room while Chuck stood by the television, looking at a program schedule on the screen.

"Yes Sallie?"

"When can we get my costume?"

"Costume? What costume?" Chuck asked.

"For trick-or-treating?"

"What? Is it Halloween?" Chuck gasped.

Sallie's expression turned sour. "Daddy, it's soon and you and mommy promised!"

Apparently, because his memory had not only left him with a blank on the last 10 years but also a blank on what the current month was, it had not occurred to him that Halloween or some other occasion or event was coming up.

"I'll talk to mommy and find out when we're going to get your costume, OK?"

"OK! You promised I could go trick-or-treating!"

"We will!"

He checked with Sarah who confirmed that they indeed needed to get a costume for Sallie. Halloween was a few days away.

"Well, while on the subject of events and occasions, are there any birthdays, anniversaries or special days coming up that I don't know about because of this memory loss," Chuck asked. "I feel bad enough not remembering you and Sallie and I don't want make you or her feel bad because I forgot your or her birthday or our anniversary or something." He shook his head in frustration and disgust.

Sarah walked up to him, wrapped her arms around his neck and looked directly at him. "It's not your fault!"

"I just don't want to hurt you or Sallie. I think I've done enough of that already," he replied.

"It's NOT your fault!" she repeated. "OK?"

He nodded. And then she kissed him. "And no! No birthdays or anniversaries are coming up soon," she said after the kiss.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

They decided to get Sallie's costume after lunch. They traveled to a shop which was crowded and packed with parents, teens, and kids wandering up and down aisles filled with costumes, decorations, gags, equipment, costume arsenal, and anything else for the upcoming Halloween. Employees dressed in costumes walked the aisles helping, answering questions.

Sallie raced all over the shop, looking at costumes, accessories and decorations. She was so excited that it was hard to keep her still. First she wanted this costume, then she wanted that costume, then this one, then that one. Chuck didn't recognize any of the character costumes she requested.

"Mommy! Daddy! That one! I want that one!" Sallie squealed as she pointed at a costume at the end of the aisle. And then she ran off.

"Sallie! Stay with us!" Sarah yelled and dashed after her.

Chuck started to follow them but felt a strong hand grip his shoulder. He looked and found himself face-to-face with a pirate. "Let's talk in private Mr. Bartowski," the pirate said and pulled him along. Chuck started to protest and then felt something poke into his side. He looked down and saw a gun.

"Don't make a sound! Just come along with me Mr. Bartowski."

The pirate led Chuck outside and between two large cars in the parking lot. He shoved Chuck against the car and spoke rapidly.

"This is the situation. We have the intersect but we can't get it to work. You can make the intersect work but you don't have it. So we both have problems and we both need solutions. What do you suggest we do Mr. Bartowski?"

Before Chuck could reply, a huge green blob barreled through, knocked the pirate out of the way, onto the ground, and quickly subdued him. A gun-toting Superman and slave girl appeared by Chuck's side.

"Chuck, are you all right?" the slave girl asked.

Chuck didn't answer. Instead he turned and looked at the green blob that was standing over the pirate. It was the Hulk. At least someone in costume as the Hulk. "I guess that's why they call the Hulk incredible," he said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The slave girl grabbed Chuck's arm and escorted him away from the scene and to another area of the parking lot, toward where Sarah had parked the car. Chuck saw Sarah pacing alongside their car, Sallie inside it but leaning out the window, and a serious looking, tall man standing nearby.

"Chuck is all right, he's right here," the slave girl said as she brought Chuck near the trio.

Sarah's anxious-looking face turned toward Chuck and relief broke out on it. But then, after a few seconds, a frown appeared and her eyes glared at the slave girl's hand which still clutched Chuck's arm. Sarah's stern eyes then focused directly at the slave girl's face. She promptly let go of Chuck's arm and departed.

The serious looking tall man smirked. "Even with the ring on his finger, you still get territorial about him, don't you?" the man said as Sarah moved toward Chuck and checked him over. "I'm all right, I'm all right," Chuck assured her. "Are you and Sallie OK?"

Sarah's eyes flashed disbelief. "Chuck, you were the one who was almost kidnapped, not us. We're fine."

"I told you that he would be all right," the man said and started to walk away.

"I'm not happy about this Casey! This is the second time he was nearly grabbed and your agents who were supposedly watching him weren't there when it happened!" Sarah called after him. Casey said nothing as he walked on.

Casey? Chuck thought. That name sounded familiar but he couldn't figure out why. But he did recognize the man's face. It was the same man who had the gun and yelled his name in that dream.

END PART 7


	8. The Plan

CHUCK VS. THE MISSING MEMORIES

DISCLAIMER: I don't own "Chuck."

SUMMARY: It's 10 years in the future and when Chuck wakes up after an accident, he doesn't remember any of the past 10 years including the intersect and all of the changes that have occurred in his life.

NOTE: In case you're wondering, this story does NOT end with everything being a dream.

PART 8 – THE PLAN

When they arrived at home, Sarah immediately marched into the bedroom. She had not said a word during the drive home and seemed angry. Chuck slowly entered the room as he saw her slam the car keys onto the bureau. "IDIOTS!" she raged.

"I'm sorry!" Chuck said. "I should have kept closer to you. But when Sallie dashed off and you went after her, it all happened so fast that I …."

Sarah's face immediately turned calm. She moved closer to Chuck and placed one of her hands onto his cheek. "I wasn't talking about you," she said softly. "I was talking about Casey and his agents. They're supposed to be watching out for you and protecting you. They should have been on that man the second he grabbed you NOT later! They're supposed to prevent something like that from happening!"

Suddenly Chuck saw a scene appear in his head. He and Sarah weren't in their bedroom but along a city street during the day. He was on the ground on his back and he was in pain. It hurt, it hurt a lot. A building nearby was on fire and a lot of commotion and activity was happening around him. Sirens wailed from nearby. But then, all of that seemed so far away to him, so inconsequential. Sarah, leaning over him and looking so worried, so frantic and so concerned blotted out everything else. All he could really, truly see and hear was Sarah. She looked so beautiful and nice, he thought in spite of the pain he felt.

"Chuck! Hold on! Paramedics will be here any second! Hold on!" she said. She looked scared as she held tightly onto one of his hands.

"Walker! What's going on? Is Bartowksi OK?" Casey yelled.

Sarah ignored Casey and kept looking directly at Chuck. Everybody seemed so excited, Chuck thought, but for some reason he felt very calm. "This is nice," he said out loud.

Panic appeared on Sarah's face. She grasped Chuck's face with both hands, holding it directly in front of hers. "CHUCK! No, no, NO! You look at me and you stay with me! Do you understand? YOU LOOK AT ME AND YOU STAY WITH ME!"

Chuck could hear her screaming. But that didn't seem to matter. He felt relaxed and at peace with himself. "It's OK Sarah. This is really nice. It couldn't be better. Dying in your arms … it couldn't be any better," Chuck told her calmly.

"NO! CHUCK! LOOK AT ME!" she screamed. She grasped his head harder and she leaned her face close to his, mere inches away.

"You are going to get to do a lot of things in my arms Chuck. And dying is NOT one of those things. Do you hear me? DYING IS NOT ONE OF THOSE THINGS!"

He didn't answer. Sarah leaned in even closer. "Don't leave me! I love you!" she whispered.

Suddenly Chuck was back in the bedroom and Sarah was in front of him, gripping his arms. "Chuck! Did you flash on something? Chuck!"

Chuck looked directly into her eyes and he wrapped his arms around her. Sarah looked at him curiously. "Chuck?"

He drew his hands up her back and grasped the back of her shoulders. "You … love … me!" he said softly.

Sarah immediately wrapped her arms around him, returning the embrace and moving closer to him. "Of course I love you! I've always loved you!"

He kept staring into her eyes and he could see it, he could see the love that she had for him. "And I love you!" he said. And for the first time since his memory loss, he initiated a kiss with Sarah.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sarah's bad mood disappeared after that. They spent the rest of the day around the house, doing chores, eating lunch and dinner, and spending time with Sallie. Every time Sarah passed by Chuck on the way to the kitchen or any other place, she always stopped to stroke his hair or squeeze his shoulder. She seemed so happy, Chuck thought. They even took some time for a family session of Sallie's story on the Storybook Weaver program.

Everything was going great. And then the phone call occurred. It happened right after dinner. A few seconds after Sarah answered the phone, her face darkened at what she heard.

"Just a minute," she said into the phone. Then she turned toward Chuck. "Watch Sallie while I take care of this." She went to their bedroom and closed the door.

Chuck helped Sallie down from her chair at the dining room table. "You still got some toys in the living room, don't you?" he asked. Sallie nodded. "OK, let's go play!" He walked with her to the living room. As they just sat down on the floor to play, Chuck heard Sarah yelling.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Chuck walked to the bedroom door. It was closed but he could easily hear Sarah talking on the phone and then pausing for responses from whoever was on the other end. She sounded furious.

"You cannot put him into a situation like that!"

"YES I am NOT acting like an agent. I am acting like a WIFE who doesn't want her husband or the father of their child hurt or injured."

"He doesn't remember any of his training. He lost his memory, remember?"

"Just like you protected him at the grocery store and costume shop?"

Then there was a long pause from Sarah. Apparently whoever she was talking to was giving her a long reply or argument. And then he heard her practically scream into the phone.

"If he gets hurt or injured, if ANYTHING happens to him, John Casey, if he comes out of this with just a scratch or bruise, so help me, I will hunt you down! Do you understand me John Casey? I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN!!!" Chuck then heard a crash against the wall as Sarah apparently hurled the phone. Then it sounded like she sobbed.

Chuck knocked on the door. "Sarah? Are you OK?"

She didn't respond at first. Then she answered: "Chuck, I need to talk to you. But give me a few minutes. Please go watch Sallie and I'll be there in a little bit."

Chuck walked to the living room where Sallie was playing. As he turned away from the door, he was then sure that he did hear sobbing.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Chuck and Sallie sat on the living room floor playing with some of her toys for about 10 minutes and then he saw Sarah standing to one side watching them. He didn't know how long she had been standing there. He looked at her and could see that she had indeed been crying.

"Sallie, could you please go play in your room for a little bit. Mommy needs to talk to daddy," Sarah said. She did not sound happy.

"Uh oh, daddy's in trouble," Sallie said as she got up.

Does this happen a lot? Chuck wondered.

"Daddy's not in trouble sweetheart. I just need to do some grownup talk with him," Sarah said and ruffled the child's hair as she walked by.

When they were alone, Chuck stood up and looked at Sarah. "Are you OK?"

Suddenly and quickly, Sarah closed the distance between them and embraced Chuck hard. She grasped him as if she were afraid he would get lost. Chuck put his arms around her. He could feel her shaking. He rubbed her back with his hands. "What is it?" he asked.

She eased her grip a little and looked at him. "I know you don't remember much about me, our marriage and our life together. But please remember this and never doubt it – I love you!" And then she grasped him hard again and held him tight.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Chuck asked. He continued rubbing her back, hoping that would help calm her.

She looked back at him. "Chuck, they've decided that the best way to end this, to bring out and catch them …." She hesitated as if what she had to say was the last thing in the world that she wanted to say. "They want to use you as bait. They want to allow you to be caught or taken by them so that they could catch them. Chuck, I don't want you to do this. You don't remember any of your training. It would be dangerous for you."

Chuck looked directly at Sarah and then suddenly, he was somewhere else, not in the house but outside, by the fountain at the apartment that he, Ellie, and Devon once shared, some time in the past. Sarah was standing there with him. They were alone, talking.

"Chuck, can I tell you something?" she asked smiling at him. "You can do anything. I've seen you in action and I'm not just talking about the bomb defusing or the diamond stealing. I mean anything you wanted, you could have."

Then he was back in the present, in the house, in Sarah's arms. She was looking at him, expectantly, waiting for him to say something.

"OK," he said.

"What?"

"The plan, let's go for it. I want them gone. As long as they're around and a threat, I, you, Sallie could be hurt or at risk. Let's end this! Now! Tell them I'll do it!"

Sarah didn't say anything. She just held on to him tightly.

END PART 8


	9. Remembering

CHUCK VS. THE MISSING MEMORIES

DISCLAIMER: I don't own "Chuck."

SUMMARY: It's 10 years in the future and when Chuck wakes up after an accident, he doesn't remember any of the past 10 years including the intersect and all of the changes that have occurred in his life.

NOTE: In case you're wondering, this story does NOT end with everything being a dream. Thanks again to all who reviewed this story!

PART 9 - REMEMBERING

"Maybe I should wear or hold up a sign that says 'Come and get me!'" Chuck joked to Sarah as they walked around the neighborhood with Sallie.

It was early evening, Halloween evening, and they were escorting Sallie for trick-or-treating. They had been out for about a half-an-hour and their daughter's trick-or-treat bag was already half full of candy.

It had been two days since Chuck agreed to go along with the plan to get kidnapped and so far nothing had happened. "How do you go about arranging to get kidnapped by the right people?" Chuck asked when he agreed to the plan.

"Good question," Sarah answered and sarcastically posed it to Casey. Since attempts had been made to kidnap Chuck when they went grocery shopping and costume shopping, it had been thought that more attempts would be made if the Bartowskis just went about their normal lives and gone out to places.

They had done just that, going out to eat, taking Sallie to the park, going to the mall and other little trips. And so far, nothing, no attempts.

Now, on Halloween, here they were, with Sallie out for trick-or-treating. When Chuck had once lagged behind on purpose to stop and tie his shoelace. Sarah had to force herself to not yell at him to watch out or to rush back to him and protect him.

But once again nothing happened. They continued on with the trick-or-treating.

About 45 minutes later, it was dark, Sallie was tiring, and Sarah decided that they should head back home. They went that way. Halfway there, Sallie asked to be carried.

"You carry the bag of treats. I'll carry her," Chuck said. He leaned down, took Sallie's bag, and held it back behind him to Sarah. Then he heard footsteps, a thud, Sarah shouting, more thuds, Sallie screaming, Sarah yelling his name, hands grabbing him, struggling, and then darkness.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Chuck opened his eyes to find Batman and the Joker watching him. It took him a moment before he remembered that it was Halloween. "If you're looking for a treat, I don't have any candy with me unless you got my daughter's trick-or-treat bag. But there are easier ways to get candy," he said.

The Joker snorted. He pulled the mask off to reveal a man, in his 40s, dark hair, and grim face. Upon seeing the face, images filled Chuck's mind: the man's name Ivan Hammermill on a file folder, Hammermill counting money, Hammermill holding a gun to a bound and gagged man, Hammermill shooting a bazooka.

"I was told about your humor Mr. Bartowski," Hammermill said.

Batman also pulled off his mask and Chuck saw a sandy-haired man in his late 20s and his mind flashed again. He saw Max Brimer and his photo on a wanted poster, Brimer shooting a machine gun, Brimer working on some machine, Brimer executing people.

Chuck glanced around. He was on his back in a parking lot of some office building with Hammermill and Brimer watching him and three men near two cars. One car was empty while the other had several other men in it. Further down the parking lot, he could see a couple of other men standing around.

"Now then, Mr. Bartowski, shall we discuss the intersect?" Hammermill said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

John Casey's cell phone rang. He was sitting in the front passenger seat as one agent drove and two other agents sat in the back seat of a speeding car. He didn't need to check the readout to see who was calling.

He pulled out his phone. "What is it Sarah?"

Casey held back the phone away from his ear to prevent Sarah's screaming and shouting from deafening him. The driver and the two agents in the back seat glanced at Casey. When Sarah's yelling finally slackened, Casey interjected. "Look, we're doing everything we can. You're not the only one who doesn't want Chuck hurt, OK? We'll find him! And you're not helping by calling me every few minutes. I'll let you know the second I find out anything, OK?" He hung up before Sarah started shouting again.

He didn't blame her. So far, the whole thing had not gone well. The Fulcrum agents had gotten Chuck, made a clean getaway and had managed to elude the agents tailing him. They had also managed to disable the trackers they had planted on him. And now, Casey and every available agent were searching and looking for any sign, any clue, anything that would help them find Chuck.

A cell phone in the back seat rang. One of those agents answered. He talked into his phone for a moment and then hung up. "We may have something," he said.

Thank goodness, Casey thought, it's about time something went right. He knew very well that Sarah would carry out her threat to hunt him down if anything happened to Chuck!

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It looked like any other office building in a city block of office buildings. They walked in through the doors and got on the elevator. Brimer punched in some codes on the elevator panel and the elevator went down. It appeared to travel for some distance even though the panel had only a "B1" listed.

The doors opened.

"After you Mr. Bartowski," Hammermill motioned with his gun.

They walked down a hallway and Chuck could see holes and burn marks in the walls. They came upon a door with a keycode panel. Brimer punched in a code and the door opened.

Hammermill motioned again with his gun for Chuck go first. Chuck entered. The room was a mess. Something had happened here, some sort of battle. Desks were overturned, equipment and papers were scattered all over.

They motioned him on and they moved forward to the end of the room. Another door and another keypad. Once again Brimer punched in a code to get the door open and they entered. This went on several more times and as they entered each room, Chuck could see more evidence and signs of some sort of battle that had taken place.

They came onto another door with another keypad and once again Brimer punched in a code and the door opened.

"We've arrived Mr. Bartowski!" Welcome back to your domain," Hammermill said and he motioned Chuck through.

They entered into an immense room of screens, computers and network servers and other electrical equipment. Chuck recognized it. It was the intersect, his work, his responsibility, his baby. And then he remembered.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Yelling. Explosions. Screaming. Gunfire. It was all getting nearer and Chuck rapidly typed on a computer keyboard. "BARTOWSKI!" It was Casey yelling at him.

"Bartowski! You've got to get out of here," Casey shouted, carrying a gun, as he ran up to the desk Chuck was at.

"I've almost got it!" Chuck yelled.

"Bartowski! In case the sound of that gunfire and grenades doesn't clue you in, let me bring you up to speed -- we are under attack. Fulcrum agents have busted in here and they're coming. They want the intersect and they're coming! Pull the detonation switch, destroy it and let's get out of here!" Casey shouted. He looked back the way he came.

"They're not getting it! It's done!" Chuck replied and stood up to go with Casey.

"What do you mean? What did you do?"

Then there was an explosion and everything went black.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Things had gone so well with their lives and now this amnesia had to happen, Sarah thought as she hung up the phone after her tirade at Casey.

She recalled how it had been with Chuck when he first got the intersect in his head and she had been assigned to protect him under the pretense of a boy friend-girl friend cover. At least it started out as a cover, she thought. But there proved to be a lot more to Chuck than what you saw on the surface and her feelings for him quickly grew into something far stronger than asset-handler and friend.

She fought those feelings plus things kept happening that seemed to always prevent them from getting closer and going forward with a relationship. Like when he broke up with her to protect her, thinking her feelings for him could get her killed. Or when Jill, his ex from college, came back into his life.

They never seemed to get a break or have something go right to help them get together. How many times had Chuck just tried to arrange a real date with her without something interfering? Sarah wondered. She recalled one date where some Fulcrum agents tried to nab him. Shots were exchanged and those agents even lobbed a few grenades, one of which had knocked a table and other debris into her and rendered her unconscious.

The next thing she knew, she heard Chuck's voice telling her to hold on. She opened her eyes and she was in an EMS with him holding her hand. Her last thoughts before she had gotten knocked unconscious had been that she had failed Chuck, that he would be killed. She was so relieved that he was all right, that he was there beside her that she begged him not to leave her side.

They made it to the hospital just fine, Chuck stayed with her the whole way and she recovered nicely. It wasn't until the next day, when she woke up in a hospital bed with Chuck asleep in a chair beside her and holding her hand that she wondered how they had gotten out of that fight alive. Four Fulcrum agents had attacked. She had taken care of two of them before she had gotten knocked out. What happened to prevent the other two from killing her and Chuck? Had Casey arrived in the nick of time and rescued them?

No, Casey told her. "It was Bartowski who took care of them after you got slammed into dream land."

"Chuck?" she exclaimed.

Casey nodded. "Fulcrum didn't even consider Bartowski a threat or any problem. When you went down, those two agents thought it was all over and stepped up to kill you and take him. According to witnesses, Bartowski went nuts after he saw you injured. He grabbed your gun and blew them away. Got 'em both with four shots. I wish I could have seen their faces when he did that. I'll bet they never knew what hit them. I sure didn't know the little geek had it in him," Casey said as he looked at Chuck, still sleeping, not hearing the discussion.

"Chuck!" Sarah said again, also looking at him.

"Yep!" Casey continued. "Then he took charge of the situation, announced to everyone in the restaurant that he was CIA special agent Charles Carmicheal and for everyone to calm down and listen. He told the manager to dial 911 immediately and say 'Agent down!' He instructed some waiters to get some clean cloths, napkins, anything that he could apply to your wounds. He had other waiters check on everyone in the room to see if anyone else was injured. He ordered everyone to remain where they were as the police and others might have questions. And when the EMS arrived and they took you away, he started to get in the ambulance with you. They said he couldn't come along, but he pulled the gun on them, said that CIA special agent Charles Carmichael was going along on the ride with his injured partner and nobody was telling him otherwise. And I guess, the rest you know."

Casey shook his head as he stared at Chuck, with one hand extended out and holding on to Sarah's hand while he still slept. "Maybe we should stop telling him to wait in the car," he added.

Sarah looked at Chuck with wonderment and adoration and gripped his hand tightly. She couldn't believe it. But as she learned long ago, there was definitely a lot more to Chuck than what you saw on the surface. And once again, another one of their dates had not turned out the way they hoped.

It wasn't long after that she finally had enough and decided to take matters into her own hands. They were on another mission and this time Chuck got injured. The two of them and Casey had been in an abandoned building pursuing some Fulcrum agents and an explosion occurred. Chuck had been hit with some debris or shrapnel. He went down. Sarah grabbed him and got him out of the building. Once outside, she looked him over while he lay on the ground groaning in pain. It looked bad. He was bleeding.

She did what she could to stop the bleeding and stayed with him on the street waiting for the paramedics to arrive. Then things turned scary. He started talking about dying in her arms. The way he sounded – so calm, so accepting, so factual -- chilled and terrified Sarah. She yelled and screamed at him not to die, to stay with her. The paramedics arrived, did what they could, and rushed him to the hospital. She stayed with him the whole way, talking to him, pleading with him to hold on. The paramedics kept assuring Sarah that Chuck would be all right but the way he had talked had horribly frightened her.

It turned out that Chuck's injury had not been nearly as bad as feared. He would be all right and his talk about dying had been delirious rambling. Later, after some quick surgery to remove the shrapnel and sew up the wound, when she sat on the side of his bed in recovery, looking at him and stroking his hair and head as he lay there still asleep from the anesthesia, she started crying. And she couldn't stop.

Then she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up. It was Ellie. She stared at Sarah with concern. "He's OK! It looked a lot worse than it actually was. He's going to be fine," she said.

"I know, I know," Sarah sobbed. "I don't know why I'm crying."

"I do," Ellie replied softly.

Sarah didn't say anything. Ellie then leaned down and looked directly into Sarah's tear-filled eyes. "It's because you're in love with my baby brother; that's it, isn't it," she said. It was not a question.

Sarah nodded. "Well, he's in love with you too, you know," Ellie said as she put an arm around Sarah and rubbed her shoulder. Again, it was not a question.

And right then and there Sarah decided – enough! Enough with fighting her feelings for Chuck! She was going to fight to have him! Enough with waiting for something to happen! She was going to make it happen!

And it all turned out to be surprisingly easy as far as the CIA and the NSA were concerned. Since Chuck was mainly in charge of the intersect and spent most of his time now at a CIA headquarters, Sarah was technically not his handler, at least not full-time. They worked together on the field only occasionally now, so the higher ups had no objections or fraternization rules to cite. One privately told her that any relationship in the past between her and Chuck would probably have been overlooked as they wouldn't have considered breaking apart one of the most effective teams. And Sarah swore that she even heard this official mumble "About time!" when she told him of her intentions to date Chuck.

Then it was time to work on Chuck. Ready and determined to talk to him about starting a relationship for real, she went to his office to pick him up for a dinner that Ellie had invited them to. But when she walked into the intersect office, she nearly panicked that she was too late.

Chuck was lying on the floor, halfway into a hatch leading into a server and there, practically on top of him, also leaning into the hatch, was that attractive female co-worker of his, Cindy. Every time Sarah visited Chuck at the intersect room, Cindy always seemed to be alongside of him touching him, leaning against him, and acting flirtatious. And now she was all but entwined with Chuck on the floor!

Sarah nearly blew up but she managed to keep her temper in check and just noted to Chuck that it was time to leave for Ellie's dinner. Brunettes! It's always brunettes, she internally raged as the pair got up from the floor. He seemed clueless about Sarah's fury as he explained that he and Cindy were working on the intersect server and that more than two hands were needed at the same time to fix the problem. Sarah remained tight lipped and angry as they walked to the car and during the entire drive to Ellie's.

By the time they arrived, Chuck finally realized that something was wrong but didn't know exactly what. Which made Sarah angrier. During dinner, Ellie picked up on the tension and made them talk. And that talk turned the corner for us, Sarah recalled. Both she and Chuck cleared the air, expressed their feelings, ended up making out on the couch and then going into his room where they made love for the first time.

And after that, they were completely, totally, head-over-in-heels in love and a couple. Nothing could keep them apart. So happy and so good together, Sarah thought. They soon moved in together and months later were engaged.

Sarah never forgot how Cindy, who Sarah had gotten so jealous about, reacted upon finding out about the engagement. A day or so after Chuck popped the question, Cindy spotted Sarah, with the engagement ring on her finger, at the intersect office and rushed over for a congratulatory hug. "I was wondering when you two would wake up and see what was in front of you all along!" she squealed. Sarah was stunned. Here she thought of Cindy as a rival for Chuck's affections and all along she was actually an ally.

Everything went well from there on – she transferred to a different job in the CIA, they got married, had a wonderful honeymoon, bought and moved into a house, they went on vacations, did a lot of things together, they had Sallie, became a family. Sarah couldn't recall when she had ever been happier. And then this amnesia ….

Chuck had been through so much -- the intersect, fights, bullets, explosions, falls, poisons, knives, car crashes, wayward helicopters, assassins, injuries, traitors, all of those brunettes, including that bitch Jill, twice, Sarah raged. After all that, all they had been through, and how much they loved each other, she couldn't lose him to some stupid amnesia, she fumed. She pressed her hand against her eyes as tears started. I can't lose him, I just can't, she thought.

"Mommy?" Sallie said.

Sarah looked at where their daughter sat on the couch. Halloween had ended badly for her. When the Fulcrum agents had attacked, Sallie had gotten knocked to the ground, her trick-or-treat bag went flying and all of the candy had spilled out. She cried about not having any candy from Halloween. Now, back home, Sarah could tell that Sallie was concerned but not about the lost candy. Her father had been gone, in the hospital and then came home. Now he was gone again.

"Mommy, is daddy coming back?" Sallie asked.

Sarah crouched down by the couch and drew her into a hug. "I hope so, Sallie! I hope so!" she said. But Sallie still seemed scared. Sarah was scared too.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The explosion that he heard inside his head during that flashback hit Chuck like a revelation. Then he was back in the intersect room with those two Fulcrum agents. They looked at him.

"We want the intersect Mr. Bartowski. Where is it?"

"I thought you guys had it," Chuck replied. "At least you acted like you did! Every time you contacted me or tried to take me, you kept asking if I wanted it back, remember?"

"That got everybody's attention, didn't it? It enabled us to get you, didn't it? No, we don't have it. But we want it and you're going to give it to us," Hammermill said.

"I don't have it," Chuck said.

Both Hammermill and Brimer looked angry, frustrated.

Then Chuck added. "But I know where it is. I hid in here when you attacked. I'll get it." And then he walked over to the left wall, toward a door. He reached toward the door knob and was stopped.

"If you don't mind Mr. Bartowski, we'll open that door."

Chuck stepped aside as they went to the door. They opened it.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Casey and his team went through the building as quickly, quietly and carefully as they could. Every step and every pace was by the book. They checked perimeters and corners, secured each room as they went through.

Casey urged his men to move quicker. He had promised Sarah that Chuck would be OK, that he would be watched every step of the way, and that they wouldn't lose him. But they did lose him for a while. It was exactly what Sarah feared. But some activity had been seen at the building that had secretly housed the intersect. It had been abandoned by personnel since the Fulcrum attack. Casey got the teams there and the Fulcrum agents outside the building had been captured efficiently and quickly. Then Casey took some teams inside hoping to find and rescue Chuck.

They had finally arrived at the intersect entrance. Had they gotten here in time? They checked the door. It was ajar. They stuck in a camera scope to check out what was going on in there. The portable monitor showed only one person. He/she was sitting at a desk working on a computer.

"Go!" Casey ordered.

The team crashed into the room with guns drawn and ready for a fight that … that was already over.

Chuck sat calmly at a desk working at a computer. "Hey Casey! About time you got here!" he said.

Casey marched up to the desk, looked at Chuck, who was acting like it was just another day at the office.

"What the hell are you doing Bartowski?" he demanded.

"Just checking on the intersect," he replied matter of factly.

"You have it? You have the intersect?" Casey said.

"Yep. When we were attacked, I told you that they weren't going to get it and I took care of it. Now should I get it back up and working or should I keep it where it's safe for now?"

Casey was speechless for a moment. Then he finally told Chuck to keep it where it was safe for now. He was pretty sure that the headquarters would be moved to a new location since this one had been attacked and compromised. But when and where was to be determined. He had a feeling that things would go quicker now that Bartowski was back and the intersect had been recovered.

He glared at Chuck. "Bartowski, do you know how many people, both us and Fulcrum, have been looking for that thing and you mean to tell me that it was safe all along? That you hid it?"

"Yep!"

"And where the hell was it?"

"Casey, if I told you that, I'd have to kill you!" Chuck joked.

Casey shook his head. "And here we thought you needed help!"

"Well, actually I do," Chuck replied. He pointed over toward the wall. Casey looked and saw two Fulcrum agents, bound and helpless on the floor. "I need you to take out the garbage," Chuck said.

"How…?" Casey stammered.

"They opened that closet door and that gave me the distraction I needed to take them down," Chuck explained.

"Closet?"

"Yeah. I got them to think that I had it in there and I started to open the door. But of course, they wouldn't let me, they insisted on opening it. And they had no idea how we had stacked and stuffed things in there. If you don't open that door carefully, an avalanche will start. They didn't and one did. We had been meaning to clean out that closet for some time. But we forgot. I guess that turned out to be a good thing," Chuck said.

Casey just shook his head. Bartowski was definitely back!

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

By the time Chuck stepped out the car that had delivered him back home, the front door to the house opened and Sarah rushed out. She ran to Chuck and wrapped her arms around him. After a long, hard hug, she stepped back and looked him over carefully.

"I'm fine," Chuck said. "Are you and Alley Oop OK?"

A surprised look appeared on Sarah's face only to be quickly replaced with joy and delight. "One of your nicknames for Sallie! You remember! You got your memory back!" she squealed as she hugged Chuck again.

Chuck returned the hug. After a while, they walked back into the house, side-by-side and holding each other.

"You didn't answer me," Chuck said once they were inside the house. "Are you two OK?"

"We're fine. I've been worried, she's been worried. You were in the hospital for several days and were gone. You came back and tonight you were gone again. And to top that off, all of her Halloween candy got spilled and lost when they took you," Sarah replied.

"Oh no! And after all of her trick-or-treating," he groaned.

He walked up to the couch where Sallie was stretched out and snoozing. He leaned down and stroked her hair. Sallie's eyes opened. "Daddy?"

"Hey Sallie!" Chuck said and pulled her into a hug.

"I lost all of my candy!" she wailed.

Chuck stroked Sallie's hair, assured her that it was OK and that they would get her some more candy as he carried their daughter to her bedroom. He set her down in her bed, tucked her in, and then sang some songs until she drifted off to sleep. He could now remember the songs he sometimes sang to her at bedtime. As he got up and turned to leave the room, Sarah stood in the doorway watching and smiling.

"My turn!" she said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After Sarah lay down on their bed, Chuck walked in with two wash cloths. He sat on the end of the bed, took off her shoes and socks and set her bare feet in his lap. Then with a wash cloth soaked in warm water, he rubbed her feet. He dried them with the other cloth and then massaged them.

Ohhhhhh, that felt soooooo good! Sarah thought. She had definitely missed his foot massages!

"You're smiling," Chuck noted. "Does that mean you like this?"

"Mmmm hmmmm," she purred. He always asked if he was massaging her feet OK. No matter how many times he had done it, he always asked to make sure that she liked it.

After a while, Chuck finished the foot massage and then moved up to the head of the bed. He turned her over and massaged her back. Ohhhhh, I've missed that too, Sarah thought. All the frustrations, tensions and annoyances of the past few days faded away as Chuck's fingers massaged her back, shoulders, and neck. He sure knew what she liked!

And that reminded her of something else that she liked, something that she had definitely missed.

She lifted her head up toward his, reached up with one arm and pulled his face down for a kiss. As the kiss deepened, Chuck pulled her around so that they faced each other. Their kissing got more passionate. Then Chuck pressed closer and tighter against her. They continued kissing and she wrapped one of her legs around him and then moved her hands to his back, grabbed the tail of his shirt and pulled.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

They lay in bed in each other's arms after, content, happy, and comfortable. "I'm sorry!" Chuck said to Sarah quietly.

"For what?"

"For putting you and Sallie through all of this, for everything that you've gone through and had to put up because of me. I'm so sorry. I can't believe that I forgot you and couldn't remember you and our life together and our daughter," he said.

She touched his cheek with one hand. "It wasn't your fault. You were injured in that explosion. Do you remember everything now?"

"Everything!"

She kissed him long and hard and then she hugged him. "I love you!" she said.

"And I love you! Always!"

"Always!"

It was all finally all right and back to normal, back to their wonderful, happy normal life, Sarah thought gratefully. She had Chuck back – HER Chuck – her husband, her lover, her friend, her confidante, her buddy, her partner, her mate – HER Chuck. He was back, he was himself. They were a family again.

She snuggled closer against him and he hugged her tighter.

THE END


End file.
